Also, for context for the lifetime care of this horse, just to add a note on the difference between an organization that is a ‘rescue’ and one that is a ‘sanctuary’.
Caveat that not everyone sticks to these informal definitions when speaking of charitable horse welfare organizations.
When thinking of the life of the animal, ‘rescue’ intends that the animal will, in time, leave the rescue org facilities or fosters, and go to an ordinary permanent owner. Good rescue orgs address medical and behavior issues that will increase the chances of placement. With the caveat that training opportunities are often limited.
In contrast, ‘sanctuary’ is the ‘last good home’. ‘Sanctuary’ is intended for animals that have physical or behavioral issues that make them hard to place in permanent homes. There is low emphasis on medical and training intervention beyond quality of life. Whatever the age of the animal when it arrives, some may live for years, even decades, in a sanctuary.
Often when we want to re-home a difficult animal, we need to clarify what type of next home that is most likely to be successful. Rehab or sanctuary? Be it private or organizational.
The most difficult are younger animals with behavior issues that don’t fit well into the intentions of most owners.
Some rescues are good at developing contacts with ‘pasture ornament’ owners who provide sanctuary. That is critical, because those owners can be very hard to find outside of rescue.
One more note on ‘rescue’ vs ‘sanctuary’ that can affect rehoming strategy == Rescue has pressure to move animals out into permanent homes to make rooms for more rescues. Every rescue org has a capacity limit, and until some animals are rehomed, they can’t take the next one. Sanctuary, on the other hand, is frequently/usually closed to new entry because they keep them for life. Until one dies, there is no room for the next one.
Anyway – big picture, that is the conundrum for all horses that have issues that make them harder to sell or rehome. Sanctuary is scarce. Rescue or straight rehoming involves expectations from the next stop that this animal may not be able to meet – and with horses, meet safely.
Notes with more detail:
’Rescue’ = Assists in removal of an animal from a poor welfare situation. Provides a place for the animal to live, sustenance, and some degree of medical care. And training. The goal is to fix problems that inhibit placement, and work toward rehoming the animal to a new permanent owner (who may owe reporting duties to the rescue org).
’Sanctuary’ = A care facility where an rescued animal can live out its life. There may be some physical/behavior rehab, but in many cases rehab isn’t a priority (other than basic quality of life). The priority is safety, care, and permanence. Sanctuary is a permanent placement (this can vary by sanctuary, and/or by animal). Basically, for horses, a voluntary pasture ornament facility.
